Love Actually: Avengers
by PassionatelyHiddlestoned
Summary: It's the holiday season, and Christmas is all around. Merriment is in the air, and so is love for fifteen people. Join the Avengers as they find new beginnings, old reunions, friendship and family, and most of all, love around them. *Love Actually AU, regular people verse* T for coarse language, and sexual references. Includes mostly canon ships.
1. 14 Days To Cristmas

_Whenever you get tired with the state of the world, you should think about the arrivals gate at the airport. People nowadays start to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but that's not always the case. It seems that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends, new friends. When every great war happened in history, none of the messages from the soldiers involved were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, you'll find that love actually is all around._

❅**TWO WEEKS TO CHRISTMAS**❅

"And here he is, everyone, the man of the hour- it's Phil Coulson, with his new single out, "Christmas is All Around! Now Phil, do you feel emotionally connected to this song that you recorded, and the message it's sending out?" the radio host asked, and Coulson leaned back in his chair.

"Uh, not particularly, no," he said, rubbing his chin. The radio show host raised his eyebrows, and behind the glass, his manager, Nick Fury, smacked his forehead. "Um, alright... do you have confidence you can reach the top five songs this season?"

Phil actually laughed at this. "God, no. No, to be perfectly honest, I think this song is the worst piece of crap I have ever recorded in my life." The radio show host was gawking at this, and Nick Fury had his head in hands.

"Okay then. Well, uh, in light of your new release, we're going to play it!" Coulson squeezed his eyes shut. "Please don't," he shuddered, but the merry track of the Christmas carol he had recorded filled the air waves, and he groaned.

* * *

It was a beautiful winter day, also the day of Thor and Jane's wedding. People were gathering around, everyone they knew, their loved ones, friends, and especially Thor's brother, Loki.

They stood at the front of the spacious chapel together, talking quietly about the night before, the bachelor party.

"As I recall, it would have been a lot better if you didn't pass out," Loki reminded his best friend, and Thor laughed. "You know me, brother. I am never one to sit out a good celebration, with mead as good as that. I shall never stop my festivities!" Loki raised an eyebrow. "You'll be a married man soon. You're going to have to." Thor sighed, though all in jest. "True."

They all looked back as Jane came into the room, and walked down the aisle, dressed in a beautiful white dress. She smiled at Thor, and they said their vows, kissing. Everyone cheered, and Loki had caught it all on tape. Now it was time for the reception.

Loki sat by himself, watching everyone dance to the music. Someone sat next to him, following his gaze out to the dance floor.

"Okay, I'm just going to come right out and ask it," said a female brit's voice. "Do you love him?" Loki turned in surprise, then looked back at the couple. "Excuse me?" "The blonde, your friend who got married? Do you love him? Because you've been staring over there for the entire night."

Loki frowned, opening his mouth a little. "He's my brother." The woman's eyes widened, and she covered her mouth, laughing a little. "Oh goodness. Do forgive me, I didn't know." Loki nodded slightly, and went back to watching. "I'm Peggy, by the way." "Loki. Loki Laufeyson."

They all went home after a night of fun, and Loki went home to develop the tape.

* * *

James Rhodes came in, and found his good friend waiting in the entryway. "Oh... hey," he said, and his friend, aside from looking quite shaken up that he had come home early, smiled back in hello.

"Why are you here?" James asked, putting his coat away, and he rubbed his neck. "Uh, I forgot something the last time I was here." "Maria let you in?" "Yeah, she...she did." James smiled. "My wife sure is nice, huh?" The friend looked uneasy, and suddenly, a voice rang out from the other end of the house.

"Hurry up, big boy! I want you at least twice before James gets home!" Rhodey stopped putting his coat away, and looked at his friend.

A few days later, he was in a small country town, out in a lovely cottage he had acquired from his service in the army. After breaking up with Maria, he had moved out here, to work on some stuff he had to get done.

There was a knock at the door. "Coming," he said, and opened it. "Oh. Hello," he said, eyeing his housekeeper. She was obviously foreign, as she had interesting gold items of clothing on, and her dark brown hair was tied back in a tight ponytail.

She smiled. "Greetings. This is the correct house, I presume?" James nodded. "Yeah. You're Sif?" "That is my name. I look forward to working with you." James breathed out as he shut the door after her, thinking about her beautiful eyes.

Maybe this little break from real life wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

A limozine pulled up to the white house, and the doors opened as cameras flashed and people crowded. The newly-elected president got out, waving to everyone and smiling as he took off his sunglasses.

"President Stark," the hands nodded to him, opening the doors. He smiled back, and went in to the lobby. "Hello, sir, I am your butler, Jarvis," an older man said, and showed him in. "Would you like to see your staff?" "That would be a good idea," Tony said, following him to a line of people.

"This is Christine Everhart, she will handle your public image," he showed him a blonde woman, and Tony smirked appreciatively. He went through a lot of people, Tony making flirty gestures at most of them, then at the end, came a woman with long ginger-coloured hair.

"This is Pepper Potts, your secretary, sir." Tony looked at her, smiling slightly as she smiled at him. "Hello, Tony. Good to finally meet you." She closed her eyes. "Damnit, shit, I meant Mr. President." Tony laughed, and Pepper cast her eyes down. "Sorry." "Whatever. You could've said the big one, then we'd all be in trouble."

Pepper smiled, and nodded, leaving Tony to follow after Jarvis, who was already looking back to see what the hold up was. "She's gorgeous," Tony said, and Jarvis raised an eyebrow, staying silent.

He showed him to his room, and Tony looked up at a portrait of Abe Lincoln. He let out an exasperated sigh, turning to it. "First day, and I've got a hard on for one of my employees already. I bet you never had this problem, Abe." He stared for a second, then scowled. "Of course you did, you hot player."

* * *

Bruce Banner sighed as he looked at a picture of Betty on his desk, thinking back to the first time they had met. He missed her dearly, and spent every day thinking about her.

"Are you thinking about her again?" asked Harley, his 11 year old adopted son. Bruce looked up. "No." "Bullshit." Bruce looked at him, raising his eyebrows. "Oh yeah?" Harley crossed his arms, and Bruce rolled his eyes. "Fine, maybe I was for like, a second." "More like an hour." "Shut up, I was not."

Harley huffed, and Bruce got up, moving to the living room. He poured them some eggnog, and sat down on the couch. "What about you?" the scientist asked, "Do you ever think about your parents at all?" Harley shrugged.

"I don't really have any good memories of them, you know? They just left me there in that garage, and if you hadn't found me last Christmas, I would probably be in some orphanage now."

Bruce ruffled his hair. "Lucky for you, huh?" Harley smiled, and looked away. "But to be honest, I've got something a lot more heart wrenching than that right now." "Oh yeah? And that it?" Harley stared at him for a long time. "I'm in love." Bruce sputtered on some eggnog, and looked down at him. "What? Well, that's not so bad! I thought it would be something worse." Harley frowned. "What could be worse than the total agony of being in love?"

Bruce shut his mouth, considering this. "You have a point." They sat together for a second. "Tell me about her."

* * *

It was a regular day at the design office, a little busier than usual, due to the holiday season, but still a pretty standard day.

"Steve, in my office, now," a voice called, and Steve Rogers bit his lip, setting down his pen and putting down some paperwork. He went into his boss's office. "What is it, Mr. Wilson?" "Damnit, Steve, how many times do I have to tell you that we're on a first fucking name basis? _Sam_." Steve laughed, and looked down. "Alright. So, what is it, Sam?"

"How long have you worked here?" Steve thought about this. "I'd say, about three years, five months, and... 2 days?" "And how long have you been in love with Peggy Carter?" "Who?" "Don't give me that shit, Steve. The creative director, Peggy." Steve smiled, fiddling with his thumbs.

"Is it really that obvious?" "Damn straight it is." The blonde sucked on his bottom lip. "So how long?" Sam pushed. Steve hesitated. "Three years... five months... 2 days," he smiled, and Sam grinned back. "Yeah, s'what I thought. So when you gonna do something bout it?!" Steve shook his head. "Oh, god... she's way too good for me."

Sam crossed his arms. "Steve, have you seen the size of your muscles? What woman in her right mind wouldn't want to get wit dat?" Steve blushed, and got up. "Goodbye, Sam." Sam chuckled. "I want an invitation to your wedding!" "Yeah, yeah."

* * *

"A little to the left, please," the camera operator, Sitwell, said to the two doing the take of the intimate scene.

Natasha Romanoff, a woman with short fire red hair nodded, whipping back around as she moved left of the man she was supposed to be "having sex with," Clint Barton. They were body doubles, and were in the midst of acting out a scene.

"So," Clint said as Natasha pretended to fondle his chest, "Crazy traffic this morning, huh?" Natasha rolled her eyes. "God, it was horrible! Man, I was ready to get out and walk!" "Same here."

Sitwell came over, and gently put a hand on Clint's shoulder. "Sorry, um, could you just, hold her breasts while she touches you?" "Oh, yeah, sure." He blew on his hands a little to warm them up. "Sorry if they're a bit cold," he said, and Natasha smiled.

"Massage them, too!" Sitwell called, and Clint nodded back, doing as instructed. "Did you hear about the new President?" "Oh yeah! He seems like he'll be good, I hear he's got some pretty big plans." "Yeah, yeah."

"Alright, we'll do the oral sex scene now," Sitwell said, and the two got up, following him over to the wall. Natasha kneeled down. "Bury your hands in her hair," Sitwell said, and Clint looked down at Natasha. "Did it take you a long time to fix your hair this morning?" "Oh, no," she waved him off, "Just a little product, nothing special."

He nodded, reassured, and tangled his fingers shyly in her hair. "How about this weather?! Forget white Christmas, I'd say this year we're getting a white snow-in!" Natasha laughed, bobbing her head up and down as she pretended to give him oral sex. "Couldn't agree more."

"Perfect," Sitwell called from behind the camera.


	2. 9 Days To Christmas

❅**NINE**** DAYS TO CHRISTMAS**❅

"We're on in 5, 4, 3, 2-"

The TV cameras all began airing as the show welcomed Coulson. "Welcome, Phil Coulson, the singer of the song that is rising fast to stardom, "Christmas Is All Around!" What was it like recording the song, Phil?"

Coulson thought for a moment. "Let me put it this way- it was like you were giving your friend a gift, like a really terrible gift-" From backstage, Fury groaned as he knew where this was going. "-That you just know is the worst gift ever, but you still give it to say you still have something from them."

The show hosts frowned. "Okay, interesting analogy... um, what will you do if you win number one?" Phil snorted. "I will perform the song on live TV, naked!" The hosts laughed. "But you have some competition you're going up against, the "Super Secret Boyband." Phil waved that off.

"Those little pricks? Come on. I mean, first of all, they're all like, what 16 years old? And second, the name. Seriously, do they work for some top secret spy initiative or something?" With that, he turned around, and started to draw something on the poster of the opposing musicians.

"What... what are you doing?" Coulson finished, and stood back. He had drawn a speech bubble coming out of all the mouths of the musicians. "See what it says?" Coulson pointed, "It says, 'we have small d-" "Okay, that's all we have time for today! As a lead off, let's play Coulson's song!" "Christ, not that crap again."

* * *

Loki sat at home, reading a book in his living room. His phone rang, and Loki checked the ID, seeing it was Thor. He answered, saying hello to his brother.

Thor spoke. "Loki, I have a favour to ask." "Okay." "You know that tape you recorded at the wedding?" "Yeah..." "Well, Jane is extremely eager to view it, so she would love to talk to you about it." Loki grimaced, and rubbed his forehead. "I-" "I'm going to put her on the phone." "Wait, no, I'm uh... I'm... busy..." "Brother, it's only for a moment. Be nice." "What do you mean? I am nice!" There was a doubtful pause. "At least be friendly," Thor corrected, and Jane came on the line, Loki biting his tongue.

"Hey Loki!" she said, and Loki sighed. "Hi." "I'd really love to see that video you took!" Loki huffed. "Yeah, well, I think I wiped it... um, plus I can't find it. I've been searching all day." "Well, if you do find it, bring it over, kay? Thanks so much for taking it!" "I've gotta go, really busy." Jane frowned on her end, but nodded. "Oh, okay. Bye." Loki stared at his phone, and went back to the book he was leisurely reading, sipping his tea as it snowed outside. He put it down for a second, and closed his eyes, sighing deeply through his nose.

Jane held her frown as she gave the phone back to Thor. "I'm trying so hard to be friendly, and he still doesn't like me! I mean, he's your brother, I want to be friends with him, if we're married, we'll probably be seeing him a lot."Thor nodded, rubbing her shoulders. "It is alright, my love. Loki can be a bit prickly sometimes. It is just his nature." Jane nodded, sighing as she pushed it out of her mind.

* * *

Rhodey sat by the lake, admiring the view as he did some paperwork that the army had sent him about some new technology he had to approve from his Colonel's position. He was about to finish, when a sudden gust of wind blew his papers into the water.

He cursed as he tried to catch them, but most of them were already in the lake.

Sif came out, and saw that the papers had blown in the water. She ran down to the dock, and promptly proceeded to take off her gear, tossing it all aside until she was only in a bra and her underwear. James admired her body, then remembering what she was doing, called out.

"Wait! It's okay, it's not that important!" Sif kept swimming, trying to collect all the pages. "It's really okay, I don't care!" He ran down, and sighed. "Well, if I don't jump in too, I'm a complete asshole."

So he took off his shirt, and jumped in, trying to collect the pages. "WOAH, this is cold!" he shouted, and Sif laughed. "Where I am from, waters like these would be considered a warm bath. I endure them in battle every day."

James raised his eyebrows, and thought about how nice her hair looked when it was cascading down her shoulders and drenched. They went back into the house afterward, with towels around them as they shivered and tried to get warm.

"This had better be important," Sif said, frowning, and James chuckled. "I really appreciate you doing that, you know." "That is good. I won't be doing it again," she retorted, and James just laughed harder.

* * *

It was a busy day at the White House, because there was to be a huge conference about the new systems Tony was proposing. There were visitors from different countries, and Tony entered the room, where there was already some talking going on.

After it was done, he brought the British Prime Minister back to one of the lounge rooms to talk. "You live in luxury, I must say," he said to Tony, who smiled and nodded. "Yeah. I never imagined when I was a kid that I'd be living in the white house!"

Pepper passed by as they walked down the hall, and the Prime Minister's eyes lingered over her figure a little too long for Tony's taste. "Who's that?" he asked, whistling. Tony frowned. "Uh, Pep- um, Miss Potts, she's my secretary." The PM's eyes widened. "Boy, you are lucky! I bet she'd be a great shag."

Tony stuttered, surprised and rather irked by his words. "Uhm... anyway, just come right in here, and I'll show you the files." They went in, Tony trying to hold back his choice response for what he had said about Pepper. "I'd love to show you some foreign relations ideas," Tony said, "I'll be right back."

The Prime Minister nodded, and after a moment, he came back with a folder full of papers, only to find Pepper there, holding a tray with biscuits and the Prime Minister touching her face. She looked very uncomfortable, and glanced at Tony for help.

"You sure are a catch," he mumbled, and Tony's eyes narrowed. "Miss Potts, will you get me the write-ups on last year's policies?" he asked, just to get her out of the room. She breathed out in relief, and walked by, sending him a silent thank you.

"Mr. Prime Minister," Tony said with an irritated edge to his voice, which the other man seemed to see. "What, are you two going out or something?" Tony pinched the bridge of his nose. "Let's go on to our discussion, alright?" he said, "before I strangle you," he mumbled to himself, and shut the door.

* * *

Bruce and Harley sat on a bench, watching the ships go by in the harbour and drinking their newfound favourite, peppermint hot chocolate.

"So. How's it going with your one true love?" Bruce grinned, "Is she...or he- talking to you?" Harley scoffed. "_She_ doesn't even know I exist." Bruce looked back to the harbour. "What if you, you know, talk to her?" "I can't do that! She's perfect! She's heaven!" Bruce raised his eyebrows. "Wow. Well, I'd say," he said leaning in, "That you're fucked, then."

Harley looked back at him, and the two laughed. Suddenly, Harley had a revelation. "Oh my god! I know how I'll get her to notice me!" "Okay, I'm all ears." "Girls love musicians, don't they?" "Uh... yes, yes, that is true." "There's a winter concert that she's singing in, so I'll join the band! I'll be...the drummer," he grinned, and Bruce smiled. "Sounds like you've got yourself a plan."

But Bruce immediately regretted his decision to support Harley in this endeavor at 1 in the morning, holding his head as he heard the (Very off) beating of drums coming from Harley's room.

He tried to ignore it, and felt the overwhelming sadness overtake him as he thought about Betty again. He decided to call his sister, Pepper, about it.

"Hey, sis. How's working for the President?" "Bruce! Hey! Work's great." "Good. Did I wake you up?" "Nah. Are you thinking about her again?" "Yeah." There was silence for a second, and Bruce felt a few tears spring to his eyes. "I miss her so much."

Pepper sighed on the other side of the phone. "Bruce, listen. You have to move on. Nobody's going to want you to bang them if you're a blubbery, crying mess all the time." Bruce laughed. "Thanks, Pep. You never fail to astound me with your great psychological wisdom."

Pepper smiled. "Well, the doctor's always in," she joked. "Now go eat some ice cream or something, you pathetic dweeb." Bruce smiled as he hung up, and could not ignore the drums any longer.

"Harley?" Bruce trudged over to the door. "What is it?! I'm busy!" Bruce glanced down at the sign on the door, that was rubbed out from "Keep Out" to "Rythym Is My Life."

Bruce cleared his throat. "Could you maybe... uh, well, it's getting kinda late, I don't know..." "I can't stop! I can feel the beat coursing through my veins! I need the music like I need air!" Bruce nodded, and yawned. "Alright, rock star." He groaned to himself, making a note to buy some earplugs the next day.

* * *

Steve sat at his desk, watching the creative director type away on her computer across the room. It was the end of the day.

He sighed to himself, desperately wanting to go over and talk to her. She was so beautiful...

"Alright, well, I'm out," she said, getting up and smoothing her skirt. Steve quickly straightened up, trying his best to make it look like he was typing something and not totally just staring at her.

Peggy smirked as she saw this, and when she walked by his desk, she stopped shortly. When Steve noticed this, he swallowed, looking up slowly. "P-Peggy. Hi! I mean, uh, bye... that is, if you were leaving... or..."

Peggy laughed, and it made Steve smile back, feeling a little more comfortable. "Good night, Steve," she said softly, and turned, giving him a little wave before walking toward the door. "Goodnight," the blonde mumbled after her, and feeling very courageous for some reason, he stood up, about to ask her if she wanted to do something sometime.

But as he did, his phone rang, and he deflated, knowing full well who it was calling him. He swallowed his disappointment, and answered. "Yeah?" "Steve?! Steve, they're coming for me... it's happening all over again, I knew this day would come! Oh god, help! I need the artillery, where are you?!"

"Bucky, hey, Buck, calm down, alright? Hey, it's okay, nobody's coming to get you. You hear me, Buck? There's nobody that wants you dead," Steve said in a calming voice. There was a long silence. "Bucky? You okay?" After another pause, the man on the other line spoke. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay."

Steve exhaled, and nodded. "Alright. Go to bed, alright, buddy?" "Alright... thanks, pal." "No worries. I'm with you 'til the end of the line." He hung up, and rubbed his forehead. His best friend, Bucky, had been in the war, and now suffered from horrible Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He called Steve all the time in the middle of frequent flashbacks, and although Steve felt like he was always answering the calls, all the time, he wanted to be there for his friend, like Bucky was for him when they were young.

He sighed, realizing he had missed his chance with Peggy tonight. He probably wouldn't have the same courage tomorrow anyway. He grabbed his things, and left for home.

* * *

Clint whistled to himself as he took off his clothes for today's shooting. Natasha came over, taking off her top in the process. "Good morning," she smiled, and Clint's eyes brightened as he saw her. "Hey! Good morning!" After a few more seconds of clothing removal, Natasha hummed.

"It's the bathtub scene today, right?" "Uhhh, yes. Yeah, cause we just wrapped the staircase one the other day, so..." "Oh yeah, right." They took their positions, and Jasper Sitwell told them where to go from there.

"So, you doing anything special for Christmas?" Clint asked, going to work on pretending to caress her neck.

"Hmmm. Well, I do have a winter concert to go to, my brother Steve's got a friend whose son is in it, so I was invited!" "Oh, wow, that sounds awesome." "Yeah. You?" "Nothing special. Maybe I'll drop in on one of my friend's big parties on Christmas Eve, since he's so famous, he'll be invited to at least one."

"Oh yeah? Who's your friend?" "Phil Coulson? He made that song, uh...how does it go?" "_So if you love Christmas, come on and let it snow_," Natasha sang, and Clint nodded. "Yeah, that one." "Wow! That's so crazy, huh? It's a small world!" "It sure is."

Jasper came over. "Clint, could you just give her earlobe a little nip next time? Thanks." Clint moved his face up a little, and Natasha moved her hair away from her ear. "Sorry if my breath tickles your ear," Clint said, and Natasha laughed. "It's fine, I'm not very ticklish." "Oh, okay."

"Nice job!" Jasper called.


	3. 4 Days To Christmas

❅**FOUR DAYS TO CHRISTMAS**❅

Coulson frowned as he checked the charts again. "Are you sure that hasn't been miscalculated or something?" "Nope! You are tied for first with the other group for number **one** hit seasonal single!"

Phil breathed out. "I can't imagine why... but hey, yay, great, woo hoo!" "That means you might win. We just might have to take you up on your promise!" Coulson grinned. "I never lie..." The host asked him what he was doing for Christmas.

"Well, hopefully not spending it like I thought I would- holed up with my bitter manager!" he joked, and Nick frowned, crossing his arms.

After the interview, Coulson went back stage, feeling pleased with himself that he could actually release a song like that and it could still earn star ratings.

He was getting ready to leave, when Nick came up to him. "Bitter manager, huh? Good to know you think of me that way. You know, after getting you your first record deal all those years ago, and oh! Right. Managing your stupid-ass career! You wanna talk bitter, Coulson, I can be bitter. I believe in your damn songs more than you do!"

Coulson stared for a second, and looked down a little, taking off his sunglasses.

"I'm...sorry Nick. I didn't mean it that way." Phil knew he had a way of just saying things before he could think. I mean, his manager wasn't the warmest of people... but he supposed he shouldn't have said it on national television. And, well, every other day of the year, for that matter. He put his sunglasses back on. "Let's just go." Nick sighed, and followed after Coulson.

* * *

Loki sat in his place, on the last page of his book, and his doorbell rang. "Coming!" he called, wondering if it was the delivery person with the gifts he had ordered. He got up, and looked out the window to see who it was.

Damn! It was her.

He groaned internally. He shouldn't have spoken- then he could've pretended he wasn't home. He grumbled to himself as he swung the door open. "Hey!" Jane smiled, and Loki averted eye contact. "Good afternoon. Why are you here?" "Good to see you too, Lokes," she joked, and skipped in.

Loki opened his mouth. "Uh, I'm actually, quite busy..." "I come bearing Christmas pudding," she trilled, and dropped a covered bowl of a sickeningly delicious looking dessert. "Thor told me you like it. You still do, right?" Loki eyed the dessert. "Um..." he sighed.

Jane spoke again. "I just thought I'd come over for the tape!" "Yes, well, as I told you before, I couldn't find it, so there was no need for you to make the trip." Jane raised an eyebrow at him as she pulled out a tape from the shelf right by the TV, and Loki frowned, trying his best to look oblivious.

"Oh! Wow... you found it! God, funny isn't it, how one person can look forever and never see anything?" Jane didn't say anything, only popped it in the TV.

"Oh, you really don't want to watch it. It's probably terrible... and... out of focus..." he faltered and rubbed his head as the video began. Jane smiled as she watched herself walk down the aisle, and looked up at Loki.

"What do you mean? This is perfect!" She continued to watch, and after a few more minutes of it, her smile faltered a little. Some shots were of the side of her face, some were of her hair, some zoom outs on her dress...

As Loki watched with her, he was extremely conscious of the embarrassment practically emanating off him, which he hated, but also, he watched the shots of Jane with wistful admiration. He loved the way her hair cascaded down her back... the way her eyes crinkled when she laughed. He loved her quirky personality.

"They're all of me," Jane said quietly, and Loki shifted from foot to foot, looking away. Jane was speechless, looking up at him. "But... but you never talked to me." Loki looked at her. "My brother had his eyes on you. I dared not interfere with his desires." Jane looked away, looking stricken. "All this time... it wasn't that you didn't like me... you liked me."

"I have to go out," Loki said shortly, picking up his jacket and green scarf, "You can show yourself out, yes?" Without another word, he left Jane on his couch, and walked briskly down the street. He walked for a while, then suddenly stopped, shouting out angrily as he kicked the pavement. People around him stared, but he didn't care.

He turned, wanting to go back, but then turned back around. Then he swivelled one more time, but finally decided against it. It hurt him so much to think about her. She was beautiful. But he was a realist- he knew that there was no chance. All he could do now is try his best to stop thinking about Jane- who was a special tick in the list of what his brother got instead of him.

* * *

Rhodey sat in the front seat of the car, clearing his throat as he searched his mind for something to say. He was driving Sif to where she was going for the holidays, her home world of Asgard, and although he was amazed at how fast his feelings came on, he was pained to do it.

It had only been them at the little place in the countryside, and he had really had a chance to get to know her- her bright smile, her beautiful finesse, the snarky responses to his questions and the look of utter confusion when he tried to explain any Earth custom to her. He truly would miss it.

"What will you be doing for the holidays?" he finally asked, grimacing as he wondered if that was the right thing to ask. Sif turned to him, in the midst of tying her chocolate brown hair back in her usual tight ponytail. She smiled. "I shall be partaking in the great festivities alongside the royal family! There will be mead and merriment all night long!"

James laughed. "Sounds like fun." "It is most enjoyable to celebrate on Asgard." She then looked at him for a second, with a hint of sadness, and whispered to herself in old Norse, "Ek ráð yð var þar." (I wish you could be there.)

James sighed as he looked out the window, wishing he could spend Christmas with her. "What will you be doing on this night?" she asked, lifting her eyebrows in earnest curiosity. "Oh, I don't know. I'll probably visit my old friend Tony at the white house, maybe..." Sif nodded. "Ah... so your friend is a... political figure here?" James smiled widely. "Very good! You're starting to get to know your way around!" Sif laughed, and they blushed.

After a while longer of quiet driving, they arrived at the barren area where she was to transport back, and they looked at each other, both sad to say goodbye though not overly comfortable with revealing it.

She turned to him before leaving.

"Ek elska yð," (I love you), she said, and James just assumed it was an honourable variation of thank you in her language. "You're welcome," he said. She smiled, and suddenly reached her hand up to his cheek, bringing his face down to hers in a kiss.

James' eyes widened, and he closed them as he kissed back, warmth spreading all over him as he realized she liked him back. When she pulled away, she gave a quick nod. "Goodbye, Colonel James Rhodes. And Merry Chrimtas." James smiled, and didn't have the heart to tell her the real name of their holiday.

She stared up at the sky, and called, "Heimdall, I am ready!"

There was a bright flash of rainbow lights, and in a second, she was gone, Rhodey feeling the lingering tingle of her lips on his. He sighed as he got back into his car and started to drive, happy that they had that goodbye but beyond sad that he had let her go.

* * *

Tony sat at his desk, fiddling with his pencil. He was watching the silver thing on his desk move back and forth, back and forth, and it was driving him nuts.

"God I hate this thing," he mumbled to the portrait of Lincoln, which he had frequently taken up doing, gesturing at the contraption that was made to calm.

"I think it's pretty cool," a voice said from the door, and Tony looked up to see Pepper. He scoffed. "How? It just irks me, moving all the time. I want to toss it out the freaking window." Pepper raised an eyebrow. "Well, you're the president... you can do whatever you want."

Tony laughed, and invited her in. "Does that include everything?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrows, and Pepper snorted. "That depends..._sir_." Tony smiled as he walked closer toward her.

"You know, Pep... it's okay that I call you that, right?" She looked down, grinning. "I would say that is on the list of things you can get away with because of being the president." Tony looked at her. "Did anyone ever call you that before?" She looked away. "My... ex-boyfriend, Killian. He... broke up with me because he said I was too 'overbearing'," she said.

Tony frowned. "He sounds like a dick. Probably couldn't handle himself like a big boy and was jealous because you can." Pepper laughed. "How do you know?" Tony smiled. "Because I know dicks, I'm one myself... just a... different kind," he said playfully, and Pepper smiled, wiping budding tears from her eyes.

"You know," he mused, looking into her eyes and brushing away a loose strand of ginger hair, " I could just have him assassinated if you want. Like you said, I'm the president. I know this guy in the army-" Pepper laughed out loud, and stared back at him. "Thank you sir... I will give it some thought." Tony smirked, and the two leaned in, closer every second as their breath stilled.

"Sir?" there was a knock at the door, and Pepper went bright red, shuffling away quickly. They both turned, and Jarvis was at the door. "Sir, you have some new messages to deal with from our policy advisor- shall I forward them in?"

Tony sighed, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Uh, yeah. Thanks, J." Jarvis nodded, and Pepper gave him a quick, shy nod, leaving briskly.

Tony sat down at his desk, running his hand through his hair as he put his feet up. "What am I doin,' Abe?" he asked, and he sighed again. "I'm a pipin' hot mess. I mean, look at her! She's goddamn perfect." He gave a frustrated groan, and looked back. "You would've gone for her too."

The painting stared back, and he nodded. "Yeah, I know you would've."

The next day, it was hectic to prepare for many Christmas events that parliament was holding, and to sift through all the invitations alone to events for the president.

"The Designer's Gala, hosted by Mr. Wilson?" "Mhmm..." "The Film Association's Dinner?" "Yeah..." "The Ceremony of Leaders?" "Uh-huh."

Tony was swivelling around in his chair, thinking about Pepper. Jarvis stopped reading the list of invitations. "Forgive me sir, but are you sure you are fully... present, if you will?" Tony sighed, looking back. "No, I'm not J. You know Pepper?" Jarvis thought for a moment. "Ah, the overbearing one?"

Tony frowned, and opened his mouth. "Uh... well, whatever, but she's my secretary." "Yes, sir, I know of her." "Would it be possible to maybe... relocate her?" Jarvis raised an eyebrow. "Sir?" "I just... think it would be best." The butler gave a swift nod. "It is done."

He left Tony alone, the president wondering if he had done the right thing. He knew he had strong feelings for Pepper, but he was beginning to worry that it would affect his work- and he was the president, for gods' sake!

He just didn't think he could work alongside her any more before making their relationship something more... and that seemed wrong, from a public stand.

He just didn't know.

* * *

"Bruce?"

"Yeah?" The scientist turned as he saw Harley coming out of his room for the first time in days. "I don't think it's gonna work. Whenever we go to rehearsals, she barely even looks at me!" Bruce beckoned for him to sit. "Is she looking at anybody else?" Harley thought about it. "No." Bruce patted his shoulder.

"Then you're still in the running for groom." Harley laughed, but returned to his former deflation. "I think I'll switch to guitar." Bruce bit his lip. "You mean, after all those nights of banging away, you're gonna switch to something else?" "Yeah. The guitarists get to stand closer to her."

Bruce laughed, and shook his head. "For both of our sakes, I hope you get this girl, Harley." Harley nodded solemnly, and Bruce paused. "Okay. This requires immediate attention." "What does?" "Your love sickness. I'm thinking we need Kate and Leo."

They looked at each other, and popped in the Titanic. "Do you trust me?" Bruce asked playfully, acting out the lines, and Harley giggled, getting up on the couch. "Yes." Bruce paused the movie. "You know, Harley... there's not just one person out there for all of us. There's usually a bunch. It just takes different paths of life to lead you to the one you end up being with."

"There was for Kate and Leo!" Harley protested, and Bruce smiled. "Yeah." "And what about Betty? Don't you think she was your one?" Bruce nodded. "You know... I did. But who knows what the future brings, right?"

Harley shook his head. "She is the _one_ for me, I know it. I even heard she wants to take shop in high school- and I wanna be a mechanic! We have so much in common. I just have to win her love, and make her see how we're _connected_."

Bruce nodded again, and sat up. "Alright. Then give me your best guitar solo, Hendrix."

* * *

It was the Designer's Gala, and Steve had seriously considered not even coming. It wasn't that he didn't like Christmas or anything- in fact, he loved it. But he was still nervous about the Peggy situation.

"Steve, Steve, Steve," Sam said, shaking his head as he came over, "What the hell are you doing over here by the refreshments table?!" Steve smiled. "You know, Sam." "Which is why you have to go and talk to her! Dance with her!"

Steve thought about this for a second, and finally decided to do so. What the hell? It's Christmas. He weaved his way through the crowd, and stopped as he saw Peggy dressed in a gorgeous red dress, with matching Sweet Dreams lipstick.

"Hi, Peggy," Steve said, giving a lopsided grin. She turned, and smiled brightly as she saw who it was. "Steve! You came!" Steve chuckled. "You thought I wouldn't?" Peggy smirked. "I'm not a complete idiot. I think I know you more than you know yourself." Steve grinned. "That's good to know. Anything else you know about me?"

"I know you... like me." Steve nodded. "Okay. Nailin' it so far." Peggy breathed out. "Oh, thank god. If I were wrong about that, I would've seemed like a right egomaniac." Steve laughed, and a slow song came on. Steve swallowed, and extended a hand to dance, which the brunette took.

"Well, I guess I'm doing something right, I got you to dance with me," Steve said, and Peggy hummed. "You certainly are on the right track. There is one thing that would seal the deal." "And that is?" Peggy looked into his eyes, and Steve knew.

In a strange burst of confidence from getting this far, he leaned in, and pressed their lips together. Peggy bit her lip after the kiss as they swayed together, and she looked down, gripping Steve's shoulder.

"Would you possibly like to... accompany me home, Steve?" Steve stuttered, and Sam walked by, dipping in. "Yes, he would," he commented, and left.

Steve laughed, and looked at Peggy, nodding. "I'd love to."

Their lips met as they clung to each other, blindly making their way to Peggy's room. "Hold...hold the phone," she mumbled, breaking away for air, "Give me a moment... count to thirty then come in," she said, and Steve nodded.

When she went in to get ready, Steve silently danced around, beyond happy that he knew she liked him back. He never would have thought... god, this night was turning out perfectly.

"Okay," she said, and Steve entered the room with her. They started to kiss, and Peggy led him back to her bed, working on loosening his tie. He carefully pulled her top over her head, and they went back to kissing. When they were in nothing but underwear, the kiss began to progress.

She loved the feeling of his large muscles underneath her palms, and she could tell he loved to run his hands through her soft hair, as he kept doing so.

Suddenly, Steve's phone rang. Peggy breathed out, opening her eyes. "Don't answer it. Just let it go to voicemail." Steve cursed internally, and shook his head. "I can't."

He rolled over in exasperation, and Peggy pulled a sheet over herself as she waited. Steve answered. "Hey." "Steve! I can't take them! I'm so scared, I'm going to die! I don't want to die, Steve..." Steve shut his eyes. "Hey, listen to me. You aren't going to die. You're safe. You are very, very safe, because you know how to take care of yourself. Buck?"

As usual, after a moment, the man on the other end had collected himself. "But what if they come back?" Steve sighed. "They're not going to," he said, and hung up. Peggy raised an eyebrow.

Steve looked down. "It's my friend, he's... not well. He calls me, and... well, I'm really the only one he's got." Peggy bit her lip. "That's very nice of you Steve. But, it's not your job." Steve took a deep breath. "Yeah. I just want to help."

"Then come here, and help me," she said coyly, and Steve turned back, smiling, and continued to kiss her. She tugged on his hair, and it was about to move further again, when Steve's cell went off again.

Peggy shook her head. "Steve. It's not your fault he's like this. It's not your job to help." The blonde stared down at her looking torn, and finally, he cringed, picking up the phone again.

"Bucky?" "Steve, I really need you. I can't take the enemy if I'm here alone, you know that! Please stay over. Are you busy?" Steve felt like crying. Everything he wanted was playing out right now. He was with the girl of his dreams, and now...

But he felt he had to help his best friend, as he had promised to do. And despite how much it hurt him- he never broke his promises.

"No, I'm not, Bucky. I'll be right over." Peggy sat up, and looked at Steve. "But..." "I'm so sorry. I know that walking out that door is basically ruining my chances with you for anytime in the future, and I'm stupid and I know it, and I really, really don't deserve you for leaving you like this. I'm so sorry, Peggy."

Peggy looked at him, and nodded. "I respect your loyalty, Steve," she said, and nodded for him to go if he needed to. She sighed to herself as he left, sad because she too, really did like that sexy, clumsy blonde she worked with.

* * *

It was the end of the day of shooting for Clint and Natasha, and they were standing near each other, buttoning up their jackets.

"It's gotten colder," Clint commented, and Natasha nodded. "Tell me about it." Clint looked down bashfully, and kind of shuffled closer to Natasha as he bit down on his lip.

"Um... I realized that is the last time we're going to get to see each other before Christmas..." "Yeah." "And, well..." Jasper suddenly went past. "Merry Christmas guys- great job with the blindfold today, that's going to look good on camera!" They both smiled and thanked him, and when they were alone again, Clint continued.

"I, uh, wanted to give you this, before you left," he said, pulling out a little box. Natasha's face lit up, and she blushed furiously.

She opened the box, and pulled out a tiny pair of teardrop earrings. She looked up, and beamed at Clint. "Thank you so much! I sort of... got you something too." Clint raised his eyebrows. "Yeah?"

She presented him with a box, and as he took it out, she giggled. "I hope you like it," she said, and he opened it, taking out a gift card to a firing range. "You told me, during the bathtub scene, I think, that you loved archery, so I got you this."

Clint hugged her, then quickly let go, a blush covering his face as well. "Thank you so much, Natasha." "You can call me Nat," she said, "We've seen each other naked, we can be on a nickname basis." Clint laughed, and she fiddled with her thumbs. "You know... I was sort of wondering yesterday, then I thought I'd ask you today... if you wanted to come to the winter concert with me?"

Clint smiled widely, nodding. "That would be awesome. I'd love to spend my Christmas with you," he added quietly. She smiled. "Okay." "Okay."

**A/N: Last chapter comes out tomorrow, the Christmas Eve one where love blossoms and stuff :) Hope you like it so far! **


	4. Christmas Eve!

**A/N: Sorry for getting this out late, my dad came to visit and I had no time to write! But here it is, the last chapter of this fic, out, at least, before 2015. Enjoy, and I hope you had a great Christmas!**

❅ **CHRISTMAS EVE**❅

"Oh my god," Coulson cried, looking at his phone. "It's Drake!" Nick Fury came out, frowning at him through his eye. "Drake who?" "The singer!" the balding man answered.

"Hello? Wow... that's.. yeah, I'd love to man!" He hung up. "Nick, I'm going to Drake's Christmas party! In Tahiti! Get the jet." Nick frowned. "Hmm...Fine. See you tomorrow then, when you're nice and hung-over." Coulson grinned, and put his sunglasses on. "Merry Christmas," he said absentmindedly, and Nick just waved him off. "Yeah, yeah."

He didn't really know why he became Phil's manager. Over the years, he would have liked to believe they had become good friends. "I guess not," he mumbled, getting out his phone to call their jet.

Coulson was astounded at how famous he was becoming. Yeah, he was pretty popular back in the day, but no one- himself included- guessed he could make a comeback. Not like this, anyway.

When he made it to the party, and as he was mingling, he couldn't help feeling a little out-of-place.

Back at his apartment, Nick was watching some disgustingly cheerful Christmas movie that had come on TV. He watched it, which then turned into a marathon as more came on after that.

It was 1:00 in the morning as Nick began to get a little tipsy. "God damn it, Rudolph," he said to the screen, "Don't listen to them! Don't help Santa, cause he's just using you! He's using you..." He laughed to himself. His career explained in a cartoon. "Motherfucking Christmas," he said, shaking his head, and turned back to face the screen.

Suddenly, the door began to unlock, and it opened to reveal a sheepish looking Coulson. Nick raised his eyebrows. "I must really be drunk..."

Coulson smiled a little, looking sort of embarrassed. "Hey, Fury." Nick got up, frowning. "What are you doing back here?" he asked, "Weren't you mingling with Drake and Taylor Swift and all of them? What about Tahiti?"

Coulson shrugged. "Tahiti was a magical place... Taylor wasn't there. But Nicki Minaj was, and let me tell you-" he grinned, but his smile faded as he remembered why he came back. "Look, Nick... I came back because... it's Christmas, and Christmas is the time for being with the people you care most about, and being honest with yourself. So I was honest with myself, and I realized that the person I care most about is, in fact- uh...you."

Nick thought he heard the singer wrong. "What the hell did you just say?" Coulson rolled his eyes. "Come on, Nick. I want to spend my Christmas with my manager- my best friend." Fury frowned, scratching his bald head. "Wow," he mumbled, and smiled slightly.

"So whaddya say we get hammered, and throw on some reruns of Hawaii 5.0. Unless," Coulson added, "You're too busy watching Frosty the Snowman." Nick quickly turned around, and shut the screen off. "Damnit," he muttered, and Coulson smirked, before giving him a handshake.

"I'm sorry for being such a douche." Fury grinned. "Yeah, you were a douche. But it's alright." He eyed him. "Merry motherfucking Christmas, Coulson." "Merry Christmas, Fury."

* * *

Snow fell outside the window as Thor and Jane snuggled up on their couch together, watching TV.

"Merry Christmas, my love," Thor said, kissing her on her head, and Jane nuzzled into him. "Merry Christmas, Thor." The doorbell went off, and Jane got up. "I'll get it." Thor smiled.

She bounded downstairs, and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she opened the door. "Yes-?" she asked, stopping as she saw who it was.

"Loki!" she said, looking up at him. Thor called from upstairs, "Who is it?" The man at the door shook his head, and held up a sign. _Say it's carollers. _Jane hesitated, then leaned back. "It's carollers! They have such nice voices!" "Hurry back, or I shall eat your slice of pizza!" Thor called, and Jane turned back to Loki.

He held up another sign, that read: _Ever since the day I laid eyes on you, I was secretly hooked. _He pulled another sign out. _I love the way your hair falls over your shoulders like a waterfall of auburn. _Jane blushed, and Loki changed the sign again.

_I love your smile- how it lights me up inside whenever I see it. _Jane smiled slightly, and Loki got a new sign. _I know that I can't be with you. _He changed it. _You have a happy life with a lucky husband. _

Jane smiled sadly, and Loki took out another. _It's Christmas (not my favourite time of year) _Jane giggled. _Which is a time for telling the truth. So I will. _

Jane looked at him. Loki stepped one step closer, and whispered, "To me, you are perfect." Jane searched his eyes, and he gave one small nod as he turned, picking up the signs and heading for home. Jane watched after him, and bit her lip.

"Wait! Loki!" she hissed, and he turned. She ran out after him, snowflakes falling over her face and onto her eyelashes, and stood on her toes, bringing her lips to his in a short kiss. When she pulled away, Loki looked star struck, his head spinning, and Jane smiled.

"Merry Christmas, Loki," she whispered, and ran back to the door, going in and shutting it. Loki turned around again, nodding to himself. "Enough now," he told himself, "Let go of her." He went home to enjoy Christmas, finally truly accepting that he couldn't be with Jane.

"Sorry it took so long," Jane said, flopping down next to Thor, "After the carollers left, your brother came." "My brother?" Thor asked, preparing to stand up, "And he did not come in? Why?" Jane put a hand on his chest. "He had to run. But let's get back to this pizza, kay, or _I'll_ eat _yours_," she grinned, and Thor kissed her. "Merry Christmas, Jane." "Merry Christmas, Thor. I love you."

* * *

Tony rubbed his chin, feeling very depressed. He kept thinking about Pepper, and missing her popping her head into his office now and then, bringing him some donuts when he asked. And he asked for those a lot...

There was a knock on the door. "President Stark?" It was his new secretary- Maria something. "Yeah?" Tony called, and the door opened. "Sir, here are some Christmas cards for you- picked out randomly from the millions." Tony smirked, nodding. Maybe some Christmas greetings would cheer him up.

He read some, which were the generic "_Happy Holidays_" or "_Season's Greetings_," until he came to one with familiar handwriting.

_"Dear Tony- I mean Mr. President._

_I hope you have been well. I miss working for you, but, I guess it's for the best. Anyway- have a great Christmas. I hope you get lots of donuts. _

_Love, Miss Potts (The Overbearing One)_

Tony grinned to himself as he read over her message one more time. "Jarvis?" he called out the open door. "Yes sir?" the butler asked, walking in. "Get the car. We've got somewhere to go."

They drove along through the fading light of day turning to night, and Tony looked out the window. "Where did you say she lived?" "All her file said was the street name. I unfortunately have no information regarding which number she's in."

Tony groaned as he saw just how many houses there were. It would take him forever... but he was willing to do anything to tell Pepper he made the biggest mistake ever.

Tony got out with some bodyguards, and they knocked on the first door.

"Hello," he said when a bunch of little girls answered. "Does Pepper live here?" They shook their heads. "Are you here to sing carols?" one asked, and Tony snorted. "No." "Please, will you?" "No. No way." "Pleeeease?"

Tony sighed. "Fine. What do I know.. uh... oh! We wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, and a happy New Year!" The girls clapped, and Tony huffed, rolling his eyes. He went next door.

A woman with shoulder length brown hair answered. "Loki?" she asked, and swung it open, only to startle at the sight of it not being whoever this Loki was at the door.

"Hi..." she said, and Tony opened his mouth. "Uh... hi. Does Pepper live here by any chance?" "No, she doesn't... are you-" "Yeah. Yeah, that's me. I'm hoping to get around and wish everyone a Merry Christmas myself. I should be done by new years," he joked.

"Wait," the woman said, "Does the woman you're looking for have like, long-ish ginger hair?" Tony felt his heart jump. "Yeah! That's her." Jane smiled. "She lives next door."

Tony took a deep breath, smoothing back his hair. He knocked on the door, and after a moment, it opened, to reveal a huge family getting ready to leave.

"Oh!" an older lady said, "Mr. President! Um... how can we help you?" Tony stuttered. "Uh... is Pepper there?" Just then, the ginger came down the stairs, carrying a purse. "God, this is so damn, fucking heavy!" she said, and stopped short as she saw who was at the door, slapping a hand over her mouth.

"Oh..." she mumbled, "Oops." Tony couldn't help but laugh, and he shifted his feet. "Hey Pep. I just wanted to talk to you, but... if you're busy, it doesn't really-" "No! No, no, I'm not busy. Just... on my way to a Christmas concert." Tony raised his eyebrows. "Oh! Well... should I come back another time?" Pepper bit her lip.

"Come with me. Come with me to the concert. We can talk on the way." Tony nodded, and got back into his car with her as the other members of the Potts family took the cab waiting.

There was silence, until Tony turned to her. "Pep, I was such an idiot. I don't even know what I was thinking, I just... I was falling for you, and I've never fallen this hard for anyone before, so I pushed you away. I was scared, and stupid, and goddamn head over heels for you. I'm a pipin' hot mess," he whispered, "And I don't want you to think I fired you because-"

She cut him off by pressing her lips to his, and Tony's eyes widened, closing slightly after a minute. He breathed out as she pulled away, and she blushed a little. "I'm sorry," she said, "I had to do that." "I'm so glad you did," Tony said, and they looked at each other.

"We're here," the driver said, and the two got out. "Maybe I shouldn't go in," Tony said, hesitating, "I don't want to steal the kids' spotlights or anything..." "No, come in!" Pepper said, tugging his sleeve, "Sh, come on. We can take the back way."

* * *

Rhodey stopped as he arrived at the White House, getting out of his car. In the end, he did decide to visit his friend Tony... but he would rather be doing something else.

"Get over her, Rhodes," he muttered to himself, "She lives on a different realm. Plus, she's way out of your league." But still, he felt like he needed to do something, to try anything else to get her back.

He went up to the door, and Jarvis answered. "Hi," James said, "Is the president in? I know I don't have an appointment, but he's a good friend of mine. Just wanted to drop in and say a merry Christmas."

Jarvis nodded. "I am sorry to inform you, that Mr. Stark has left to attend to personal matters." Rhodes stopped, having a revelation as he got an idea for what he could do. "Yeah..." he said softly, "And that's what I have to do too."

He turned around, and ran to his car, quickly jumping in and driving as fast as he could to get to where he was going. He finally made it to the bifrost site, and got out. He decided to do what he saw Sif doing the other day, even though it made him look like an idiot.

"Uh... Heim-dall? Is there anyone there? Can you like... uh... beam me up?" Suddenly, there were some flashing lights, and all around him, wind picked up and blew dust around him in a small tornado. He felt himself lifting, and the colours overtook him, pulling him at full speed through the air and into space.

After a quick and very dizzying trip, he gaped at the sight before him. He was in a large golden room, with a serious looking man standing and holding a golden sword. "Welcome to Asgard," the man said, and Rhodes nodded slowly. "Wow..." The man walked over. "I am Heimdall, gatekeeper of this realm. I have seen your interactions with our Sif... and have seen your mutual affection for each other. It is Christmas after all- a cause for celebration of love. You can find her in the palace."

Rhodey, still shocked, thanked him, and ran toward the big golden palace. He went in, and asked someone who was walking by where Sif was.

"Is this an inquiry after the whereabouts of Lady Sif are?" a voice came from the other side of the vast room, and James turned to find a man with white hair and a white beard, sitting atop a throne.

"Yeah. I mean, yessir, I'm looking for her." The man looked thoughtful. "Why do you seek her?" James looked down. "I... want to marry her." The man's eyebrows shot up."Though she is not of any relation to me or my ancestors, I consider Sif one of my own," the man said, and for a moment, James thought he would disapprove.

"Which is why I shall assist in any way I can to help her find happiness, if she so desires it in turn." Rhodey broke out in a grin, and the man got up, a woman standing beside him following. "When did you two meet?" the lady asked, and James smiled. "A few weeks ago. But we got to know every little thing about each other in that short time," he said.

"What is this?" a voice rang out behind them, and a very large, long auburn haired man joined the group. "Who, may I ask, are you?" James looked at him. "Hey, I'm James Rhodes." The man beamed. "Ah! A midgardian! It is a pleasure to welcome you here to Asgard! Volstagg, at your service. Where are you going?"

"To find Sif." "Lady Sif? How do you know her?" "We...well, we lived together, you could say." "Ah, yes, she did mention something about taking a few weeks to work on Midgard," came another voice, and this time, a blonde with a goatee and a sword joined them.

"Greetings, stranger, I am Fandral. So you're the one that stole Sif's heart, eh?" James felt his heart beat increase. "She talked about me?" "Oh yes. Quite frequently, in all honesty." James smiled.

Somebody else joined the party of five, but he did not look as friendly as the others. "Who is this outsider?" the black haired man asked, scowling. "Calm yourself, he is looking for Lady Sif."

The man narrowed his eyes. "You plan to assassinate Lady Sif! Treacherous Midgardians." Volstagg rolled his eyes, and Fandral sighed. "Sorry- Hogun's a bit... well, grim." "Everybody!" Hogun called, "This Midgardian man is on his way to enslave the great Lady Sif!"

James began to protest. "Uh, that's not what I-" By now, many people were following them, and they led a huge trail of people.

"This way," Odin said, and they finally made it to a large feasting area, where James saw Sif sitting, preparing to join in the merriment. "Go to her," Fandral smiled, and James sucked in a breath.

"Sif!" he called, and she turned in surprise, seeing him. She gasped, and dropped her cup, putting a hand over her heart. James swallowed, trying to remember the Norse he had studied. "Uh... kœrr Sif. (Dear Sif) "Ek elska yð." (I love you.) "And when you love someone, you should be with them. Sif, I want to be with you- you can move in with me on Earth, or I can live here on Asgard, it doesn't matter. The point is... I... er... ráð við kostr yð?" (I wish to marriage you?)

Sif giggled a little, and behind him, he heard the low laughter of Fandral and Volstagg.

Fandral whispered something in his ear, and James turned back around. "Oh... um, kvángaðr yð." (Marry you.) Sif felt lightheaded, and felt as if she was soaring. Everything she had wished for was coming true.

"Já," she said breathlessly, "Yes." James grinned, and they kissed, a full one this time, and he picked her up as everyone cheered. Well, Hogun grumbled, but the rest of the Agardians cheered at least.

" Glaðr jóla, Sif." "Merry Christmas, James."

* * *

_"Merry almost Christmas," Steve grinned, and Bucky smiled back. "Right back at ya, Steve. Thanks for dropping in- you didn't have to." Steve shrugged, sitting down. "Hey, I'm always here for you, you know that. We could do like when we were kids. Put the pillows up, make a fort... just like the good ol' days." _

_Bucky looked at Steve, and smiled sadly. "Steve... you can't waste your life on me." Steve started to protest, and Bucky held his prosthetic hand up. "No. You're my best friend. I have terrible PTSD, and I don't know why, but I forget who I am for a minute when that happens, all I know is the war... I relive the war in my mind. But I've got to find help. On my own. I'll be okay." _

_Steve looked at his friend, then down at his hands. "Are you sure, Buck?" Bucky smiled. "Yeah. I don't think I'll get any better. But I'll sure as hell try." Steve bit his lip, and put a hand on his friend's shoulder, before unpacking the gift he had brought for their annual exchange. _

"Steve?"

Steve snapped his eyes away from his blank sheet of paperwork, and looked up at Sam, who was standing over his desk. He had been thinking of a few days before, when he had visited Bucky.

"Steve, you okay, man?" Sam asked, and Steve smiled. "Yeah. Just thinking about stuff." Sam crossed his arms, sitting down on the corner of the desk.

"You've still got a chance, you know. So it didn't work out the first time! Whatever. You can give it another shot!" Steve looked up, and looked over at Peggy. She was focused on her screen, therefore her emotions were unreadable at present, and the blonde sighed.

"I blew it. She won't take me again." Sam shrugged, getting up. "You won't know until you try."

Steve contemplated this as he waited and watched the clock tick by, until it was time to go.

"Aight, Merry Christmas, everyone!" Sam called, "Go have fun!" He looked at Steve. "That means you, buddy." Steve grinned. "You have a good holiday, Sam. See you in the new year."

After everyone but him and Peggy had left, he went over to her desk. "Hey, Peggy," he said, looking down, and Peggy got up. "Hello, Steve." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm really sorry." Peggy looked at him. "Steve, I told you. I respect you for your loyalty." Steve shook his head. "I don't want respect. Well, not mainly, anyway. I want..." he took a deep breath. "I want you to love me, and I want to love you, and I want us..." he stepped closer, bringing a gentle hand to her cheek, "To love each other."

Peggy's eyes widened slightly at Steve's confession. "Are you sure?" she whispered. "I've never been more sure about anything in my life," Steve said back, and brought his lips down to hers. Peggy melted into the kiss, and they wrapped their arms around each other.

After a few moments of this, Steve glanced at his watch. "Oh, damn... I've got to make it to the Christmas concert at my friend Bruce's son's school, I was invited." Peggy's lips formed a straight line, and she nodded curtly. "Follow me."

Steve hesitantly followed her, and she led him to her motorcycle, which Steve was surprised she even had. They got on, and they rode off toward the concert together.

When they got there, they hurried in, going to get a seat. "You're sure you don't mind me coming along?" Peggy asked, and Steve turned around to face her. "I was the one who screwed up in the first place. It's the least I could do."

Just then, they saw two other people coming in the way they did. "Natasha?" Steve asked, and grinned as her sister hugged him. "Stevie! How's life?! This your girlfriend?" Steve blushed deeply, about to deny it, but Peggy nodded with a smile. "Yes, that's me."

Natasha beamed, and Steve looked to Clint, who was with the short redhead. "Who's this?" "Clint Barton, meet my brother, Steve." They shook hands. "How'd you two meet?" Steve asked as they found four seats, and Natasha and Clint both looked like deer caught in headlights.

"Uh..." "Uhmm..." "Uh...well..."

* * *

Bruce sat in the audience, waving to Harley, who was peeking out of the curtain backstage. The boy gave him a thumbs up, and Bruce gave them back. Harley then ducked out of sight behind the curtain, and the stage lights came on.

Harley nervously bit his lip, and the curtain went up as they all finished getting into position.

His future girlfriend went up to the front, and began to sing. "I don't want a lot for Christmas... there's just one thing I need..."

She _sounds like an angel,_ he thought dreamily, then shook himself back to reality right before his guitar part came in. He played it the best he could, going up on the left side of her as the other player went on the other side.

She turned to him and smiled - she SMILED - and Harley felt his head spin as he looked out at Bruce. Bruce grinned at him, and nodded at him to get closer. Harley took a step, until they were almost moving step in step with each other. Harley had never felt so on top of the world.

When she finished, she ended with, "All I want for Christmas is _you_," and looked directly at Harley when she said it. Harley almost fell over as his knees turned to jelly.

After it was done, they went backstage, and she went up to Harley. "You play really well." Harley smiled widely. "Not half as well as you sing! Man, you were amazing!" He blushed. She smiled. "I like you, Harley." His eyes widened. "You...you know my name?" She giggled. "Of course."

She then leaned forward, and planted a small kiss on his cheek. "Merry Christmas," she said, and dashed off. Harley just stood there, in shock, and brought his hand up to his cheek.

"Harley!" Bruce's voice rang out, " You did it! Dude, you were awesome! Your guitar made the show!" His dad regarded him when Harley didn't respond. " You... you okay? Where is she?" Harley pointed, a stupid grin on his face. Bruce smirked. "I'm not even gonna ask. Come on, rock star, let's go grab some Christmas hot chocolates and celebrate, alright?"

Harley nodded absentmindedly, hand still upon his cheek as Bruce guided him out.

* * *

Clint and Natasha sat in the audience beside each other, clapping as the concert ended. Clint's hand drifted slowly over to rest on Natasha's knee, and she smiled as she carefully placed her hand on top of his. Clint blushed, and they looked at each other.

"I'll drive you home," he mumbled, and Natasha looked down. "Oh, I couldn't ask you to do that..." "It's not trouble! Really!" She smiled, and nodded. "Thanks."

They drove back in Clint's car, and when they got to Natasha's apartment, they looked at each other.

"So..." "So."

Clint bit his lip. "Natasha, I have to tell you something." She looked into his eyes, and he opened his mouth. "I...really like you. Like, I like you like you... a lot." Natasha giggled, and pulled his head to hers for a kiss. They kissed for a moment, Clint surprised yet ecstatic beyond belief. Natasha finally pulled away, and said, "Clint- all I want for Christmas... is you."

Clint blushed deeply, and it started to snow big, white, fluffy flakes as they went back in for another kiss under the sparkling Christmas lights on Natasha's door.

* * *

Back at the concert, everyone in the audience was preparing to leave, when the curtain accidentally opened, to reveal-

"Is that... the president?" Steve asked Peggy, and her eyebrows shot up. "Good god, it is."

There on stage, in front of everyone to see, were Pepper and Tony heatedly making out, hands fisted in each other's hair. After a second of dead silence, so quiet that you could almost hear crickets chirping, and intense stage lighting beating down on them, Tony finally noticed, and went red.

"Pep," he hissed, pulling away. "What is it? Why'd you stop?" She breathed. She pulled away, and her eyes blew wide. "Oh...shit!"

The audience suddenly broke into applause, and Pepper smiled, whispering through her teeth to Tony, "What do we do?" Tony smiled out to the audience, putting a hand on her shoulder. "This is out, _we're _out now, so just smile and wave... smile and wave."

Pepper looked over to him. "Are you okay with... you know... us, being out?" Tony turned to her, putting both hands on both of her shoulders. "I wouldn't have it any other way." He turned back to the audience, and grinned. "Plus, I love to make a splash. Especially on Christmas...when love is all around."

So love, it seems, is everywhere, if you look closely enough. These seven couples of bashful, snarky, funny, wistful, romantic, blunt, and clumsily loving people found love when it was least expected, so special that it will thrive for the rest of their lives- but that's usually the best kind, right?

**Merry Christmas, from Tony, Pepper, Thor, Steve, Peggy, Bruce, Harley, Jane, Loki, Sif, Rhodey, Fury, Coulson, Clint, Natasha, and me, and have a historically awesome New Year! x**


End file.
